Deadly Connections

by Renee Pawlish

  “I’ve been thinking about that. If Gary kidnapped the kid, then how did he continue the charade of searching for him the rest of the night?”

  “Maybe he drugged Logan, kept him tied up in the back seat?” I mused, then dismissed that. “I don’t like that. Too risky. What if he had help?”

  “Someone else kidnaps the kid, and Gary acts like the worried dad. But why?”

  I lifted my shoulders. “He wanted sole custody of Logan? He’s made it clear he doesn’t believe Audra was a good mom.”

  “Then something goes wrong, maybe Gary loses his temper and kills his son?”

  “Then disposes of his body in a dumpster.” I pondered that. “It’s cold, but I’ve seen worse.”

  “Me, too.” Spats got up, touched his tie, then put on his coat. He looked immaculate. “I’ll get started on those phone records. See you later.”

  I gave him a halfhearted wave, then yawned as I kept going through the notebook. Stacks of paper, a person’s life whittled down to this. And what secrets did the pages hide? After a few minutes, I grew antsy. In my head, I heard my mother chiding me to sit still. I’d never been good at that. Not like my sister. She was a straight-A student, on the honor roll, and did everything right, at least in my parents’ eyes. I, on the other hand, had a hard time conforming. Again, according to my parents. It hadn’t mattered that I’d done well in school, got a degree in law enforcement, and had worked my way up to homicide detective. Some things just didn’t matter. I grimaced. My family had secrets, too. I kneaded my neck for a moment and dismissed those thoughts, then called Tara.

  “You want to know about that woman’s computer already?” she asked. “Hey, I’m good, but not that good.”

  “Yes you are. Have you found anything interesting yet?”

  She chuckled. “So far, nothing. The laptop has some sites about superheroes, and someone liked to play video games. Kid games,” she clarified. “I don’t see anything wrong with what I’ve found so far. No contact with anybody suspicious on social media, but again, only so far. There are visits to real estate sites, stuff like that.”

  “Yeah, Audra’s a realtor.”

  “I figured,” she said drily. “Other than that, nothing. You need to give me more time, though.”

  “Hmm,” I said. “I was hoping we might see something right off the bat.”

  “Not this time. I’ll keep working on it, and if I see anything fishy, I’ll get in touch right away.”

  “Thanks, Tara.”

  I hung up and looked into the notebook again. Audra had a lot of Facebook contact with Heather Neville. Audra’s best friend? I made a note to talk to her. My phone rang and I answered curtly.

  “I got the warrant for Gary’s laptop,” Ernie said.

  “That’s great. And Spats is picking up the one for the phones too. Where are you?”

  “The courthouse.”

  I could use a break. “Meet me at the Rooster & Moon in fifteen minutes. I’ll get the warrant from you, and then have another talk with Gary Pickett.”

  “I’ll see you there.”

  I hung up and headed out the door.

  Chapter Eight

  The Rooster & Moon Coffee Pub is a hip coffee shop close to the station. I like going there because they make a good cup of coffee, and it isn’t the usual Starbucks or similar cookie-cutter place. At the Rooster, I can be alone with my thoughts.

  And right now, I needed a cup of coffee. When I got there, Ernie hadn’t arrived yet, so I ordered coffee, black, and sat down at a table near the door. I sipped the brew, feeling it give me a much-needed jolt. I held the warm mug in my hand and thought about the case.

  The parents are always suspects, but Logan’s murderer could’ve been anybody in the neighborhood, or a stranger for that matter. I needed to move fast. The more time that elapsed, the more likely it would be that we wouldn’t find Logan’s killer. My mind flashed to his body in the dumpster. It took a brutal person to slash his wrist, and the same cold person to dispose of his body like that. One would think that a parent couldn’t do that to his or her child, but I’d seen worse. I wasn’t ruling out either Audra or Gary Pickett just yet. I was still deep in thought when Ernie walked through the door, his tie askew, an unlit cigar stub clamped between his teeth. He had an envelope in his hand. He saw me and started over.

  “The cigar,” I said.

  He glanced around, then gave an irritated shrug as he tossed the cigar in a trash can.

  He walked over. “I don’t understand why you like this place. It’s out of the way, and I can never remember where it’s at. I had to drive around the neighborhood before I found it.”

  “It’s out of the way. That’s why I like it.”

  He smirked at that, then tossed the envelope on the table. “Here you go.” He sat down. “Hot off the presses, as they say.”

  I pulled out the warrant and scanned it. “Any trouble getting it?”

  He shook his head. “No. When the judge heard about Gary Pickett not wanting to give up his laptop, he didn’t have any problems signing the warrant. Not with Gary’s son being dead.”

  My coffee was cooler, and I took a big gulp. “Let’s see him fight me now,” I muttered.

  “What’s next?” he asked.

  “I’ll handle the laptop situation with Gary,” I said. “Can you look through the background information that’s been gathered on Latoya Anderson? So far, I’ve only been able to look at Audra and Gary. I’d like to know more about Latoya and her family, see if there’s anything to make us suspicious. Latoya gave Audra a solid alibi for last night, and she was also at Audra’s a lot since Logan disappeared. But check on the other neighbors as well, see if anyone has suspicions of Audra. Also, Latoya’s son, Terrell, mentioned hearing something, a loud bang, around the time Logan went back home. I was wondering if it could be a car backfiring. See if anyone else heard that as well. And let’s make sure none of the neighbors seems fishy. It’s possible one of them kidnapped and killed Logan.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” he said. “It’s a sick person who would do that to that poor little kid.”

  “No argument from me on that.”

  “When is the boy’s autopsy?” he asked.

  “I’m hoping that Jack will put a rush on it,” I said. “It’s either going to be this afternoon or in the morning.”

  “Let’s hope that tells us a little more.”

  “Right. And would you follow up with the CSI team when they’re finished? See if they found anything noteworthy at the crime scene. Check on the neighbor kids, too, to see if Logan was friendly with anyone else. See if any of them heard anything. Logan’s friend, Terrell Anderson, thought he might’ve heard a car backfire. Also, see if they think that Logan was talking to anyone he shouldn’t have been.”

  He stood up, hefted his pants up over his stomach, and gave me a curt nod. “See you back at the office.”

  I didn’t say anything. He turned and left. I left my lukewarm coffee on the table, picked up the warrant with a smug smile, and headed out the door.

  Gary’s face clouded over when he opened the door and saw me. He hesitated, and I think he was tempted to tell me to go to hell, but instead he forced a smile.

  “Detective Spillman. What can I do for you?” The sweet suaveness in his voice was almost too much to bear.

  “I have a warrant for your laptop.” I held up the envelope.

  The smile vanished. He glared at me, unable to hide his contempt. “I told you I don’t want to give it up. I have too much information on it that I need. I don’t see why you have to take it.”

  I didn’t even bother to shrug. “And I told you, we’ll copy the hard drive and give the laptop back to you as soon as we can. You likely won’t be without it more than overnight.”

  He held out a hand. “Let me see the warrant.”

  I gave him the envelope. He made a show of taking out the paper and carefully reading the warrant. He forced an exaggerated sigh. It seemed he was into m
elodrama at the moment. Then he handed me the paper and envelope. “I’ll go get the laptop.”

  Before he could shut the door, I put my hand out. “I’ll go with you.”

  He locked eyes with me, and we stared at each other for a moment. “I’m not going to do anything to it, if that’s what you’re wondering,” he finally said.

  “Then you won’t mind my coming with you.” I put on my own sweet smile.

  He was stubborn, and he held his ground for yet another moment. Then he turned on his heel and walked into the house. I opened the door wider and stepped inside.

  As he walked down the short hallway, I glanced through an open door into a master bedroom on the left. A stack of shirts and pants were folded up on the bed. He headed toward a doorway farther down the hall, but I stopped.

  “Going somewhere?” I gestured toward the master bedroom.

  “I have business next week.”

  “It’s a little early to pack.”

  He looked at me and didn’t say a word. I joined him in the doorway. He pointed to a desk in his office. “There’s the laptop.”

  It was still on. I had him shut it down and unplug it. He handed it to me with a scowl. I took it with a grim smile. “Do you have a minute to talk?” I asked.

  His back was erect as he walked back into the living room. He didn’t invite me to sit down but crossed his arms and said, “What’s going on?”

  “You were arrested once.”

  “That bar brawl I got into? It wasn’t anything, so why mention it?”

  I couldn’t tell if he was trying to bluff me, or if he thought I was really that stupid. “Want to tell me about it?”

  He took a long time to answer. “It wasn’t anything. A guy and I got into a bar fight. I punched him, and the bar owner called the police. I spent the night in jail. It doesn’t have anything to do with Logan, that’s why I didn’t say anything.”

  “It sounds like a bigger deal to me, if the police got involved.” No response. “Your wife–”

  “Ex-wife,” he said pointedly

  “Ex-wife,” I mimicked him, “says that you drank a lot, especially near the end of your relationship.”

  “It wasn’t that bad.”

  “How well did you get along with her? Did you treat her well?”

  “Yes,” he said, then he tried to defend himself. “We’d fight sometimes, but all couples do. And I didn’t drink that much. She’s not a good mother, and I fought for custody of Logan. She was just trying to make me look bad. That’s all there is to it.”

  I’d have to ask Audra for her side, I thought. “What about Logan?”

  “Was I abusive to him?” he snapped. He shook his head. “Never. I had a good relationship with him, and he would’ve been better off living with me than her. If she’s trying to tell you differently, that’s not true.” He jabbed a finger at me. “I know I’m a suspect, but she should be, too. She wasn’t even watching out for him the night he disappeared.”

  He seemed to want to make a point of that. There was little compassion in what he said, and also little ownership for his actions.

  “Audra also says the night Logan disappeared you started a fight with her.”

  “I was angry. Can you blame me?”

  “Did you try to defuse the situation?”

  “I did, but Audra was pissed. There wasn’t anything I could do. It was all her. It’s always all her.”

  “Tell me about your relationship again,” I asked, wanting to see if he’d change his story. This time, he was a little more forthcoming.

  “It wasn’t that bad. I mean, sometimes we fought and it got a little heated, but it never came to blows.”

  I needed to check with Audra on that, too. I also made a mental note to talk to Latoya again about the Picketts’ relationship. And the other neighbors. Had any of them heard Audra and Gary fighting? Had anybody seen them get violent? And had anyone witnessed Gary being abusive to Logan?

  “What about Logan? You never hit him?” It was pointed, to see what he would do.

  He uncrossed his arms and glared at me. “I never touched Logan, ever. You got it?”

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  “I don’t like what you’re insinuating.”

  “And what would that be?”

  “That I had something to do with Logan’s death.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I know that you look at the parents, but I didn’t do anything to him.”

  “Then you have nothing to worry about.”

  “I may not have had the best marriage, but I cared about my son.” His voice cracked, and I couldn’t be sure how genuine it was. “I loved him. I want him back.”

  There was nothing I could do about that, so I stayed silent. I went on. “Why didn’t you tell me about the bar brawl?”

  “Because I knew what you would think. It’s exactly what you do think, that I had something to do with my son’s death,” he said sullenly.

  He wasn’t far off. “Anything else you want to tell me?”

  “You mean like have I been in other trouble with the law?” I looked at him and waited. “No, you won’t find anything else.”

  I waited a beat, then held up the laptop. “As I said, I’ll get this back to you as soon as I can.”

  “You won’t find anything on it. I’ve done nothing wrong.”

  “Good.” I smiled pleasantly. “I may need to come back and get more information, okay?”

  He hesitated, then thought it best to nod. “Yeah.”

  “Thanks for your time.”

  When I left him, he was still standing in the living room, hands in his pockets, but his shoulders now slightly stooped, defeated.

  Chapter Nine

  “I’ve got another gift for you,” I said to Tara Dahl as I walked into the room. Then I realized she had earbuds in, with her usual heavy metal blaring, and she didn’t have a clue I was in the room. I tapped her on the shoulder, and she jumped. I held up Gary Pickett’s laptop.

  “Geez, you scared me,” she said as she pulled out the earbuds. Music blasted from them, and noticing my sly, disapproving grin, she turned it down.

  “You shouldn’t listen to the music so loud. You know that you’re going to ruin your hearing by the time you’re forty.”

  “Hey, I’ve got almost fifteen years before I’m forty.” She managed to hold back a snort and ran a hand through her dyed black hair, a throwback to her Goth days. “You don’t appreciate great music.” I laughed. “Besides,” she said, “it helps to shut out the world while I work.”

  Tara and I had an ongoing exchange about her listening to music that was too loud, and my telling her not to, as if I were her mom. Although, for the record, I’m no more than about ten years older than she. But somebody has to watch out for her. She’s too valuable not to take care of.

  “What’s that?”

  “This, Tara, is a laptop.”

  “Ha ha,” she said. “Whose?”

  “Gary Pickett. I had to get a warrant for it, and then he surrendered it.”

  “Not happily?”

  I nodded. “You said it.” I set the laptop down, then perched on the corner of the desk. “When can you analyze this?”

  Tara sat back and took off her glasses. She rubbed her eyes slowly. “You’ve had me busy on Audra’s laptop. I just finished working on it.” She saw the look on my face, then said, “I’ll get it done as soon as I can.”

  I gestured at her monitor. “What have you found on Audra’s laptop?”

  “I took everything and copied it to an external hard drive, so I’m working off that. You’ll be able to give the laptop back to her anytime.” I arched an eyebrow at her and waited. “So far, I haven’t found anything,” she said in answer to my look. “Audra’s got all kinds of real estate records, plenty of pictures of her and the kid, and all kinds of other stuff people store on their laptops. No porn, nothing illegal that I’ve found so far. Again, I just started.”

  “So she’s a saint,” I said.
>
  Tara shrugged. “I can’t speak to that, but from her laptop, so far so good.”

  “I want all the pictures of her and the boy,” I said. “Can you send them to me?”

  “Sure, you got it. What else?”

  “You checked her email? Internet activity? Especially the last couple of weeks.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, I’ve got a report on that. I’ll print it out and send it up to you.”

  “Perfect.” I tapped Gary’s laptop. “Same thing on this. Be thorough. I want to know what he’s hiding.”

  “You’re pretty confident he’s hiding something.”

  It was my turn to nod. “I don’t buy that he just couldn’t live without the laptop.” I lightly punched my gut. “This tells me otherwise.”

  She laughed, then put her glasses back on. “The dad’s a killer?” She rubbed her face. “Wow.”

  I stood up. “I know. Who could do that to their child? But it’s been done plenty of times before.”

  She turned back to the computer. “I’ll talk to you soon.” Her head nodded to an old tune by AC/DC.

  I thanked her, grabbed Audra Pickett’s laptop, and walked out of the office. I stood in the hall for a moment, leaning against the wall. It was cool against my back, soothing the tension between my shoulder blades. I hoped the information on the laptops would reveal something, a clue to what happened to Logan. I stretched, then went back to my desk and sat down. The huge notebook of information was still sitting there. I opened it again and thumbed through pages. I needed something to pop out at me. Each second that passed was lost time, time that would make it harder to find Logan’s killer.

  My cell phone rang. It was Harry. Harry Sousen and I have been together for over eleven years, and I love him. He’s amazing. I’ve just never been ready for more of a commitment. I shook my head, not wanting to think about that now. Harry’s the president of his own computer consulting company, and he’s busy all day long, so he usually doesn’t bother me during the day; plus, he knows my schedule can be chaotic. I let the call go to voice mail. Harry would have to wait until tonight.